Sony Xperia XA1 Plus announced, packs a few small improvements over predecessor

The Sony Xperia XZ1 and XZ1 Compact may have stolen the show at Sony’s big announcement today, but the company’s mobile portfolio also gained some affordable competition in the form of the Sony Xperia XA1 Plus.

Mid-range specs, powered by a MediaTek Helio P20

An upgrade over this year’s Sony Xperia XA1, the Xperia XA1 Plus offers a large 5.5-inch Full HD display which hits 100% of the sRGB color gamut. It comes powered by MediaTek’s Helio P20 processor – with four cores at 2.3 GHz and four cores at 1.6GHz. And if that wasn’t enough to catch your eye already, the new budget option comes with 3 GB RAM and 32 GB internal storage, which can be expanded up to 256gb using a microSD card.

The whole package is powered by a 3,430mAh battery with Sony’s STAMINA mode and QNOVO adaptive charging, as well as Sony’s proprietary pump express+ 2.0 quick charging, which should easily get you through a day of heavy use.

Other notable specs include LTE Cat 6 or Cat 4 – offering download speeds of up to 300 Mbps or 150 Mbps respectively (depending on area), NFC, Bluetooth 4.2, aptX support for better audio (alongside a SmartAmp with Clear Audio Plus) and a bottom USB Type-C port. Additionally, the phone measures 155 x 75 x 8.7 mm and will be available in Black, Blue, Pink, and Gold colors.

Not quite the newest OS

A camera that impresses

The XA1 The highlight feature in this device is undoubtedly the camera. With the Sony Xperia XA1 Plus inheriting the Xperia Z5’s main camera, it’s sure to capture a great image just as the Xperia Z5 did before it. The device uses a 23MP camera with 1/2.3” sensor, hybrid autofocus and the ability to launch the camera in 0.6 seconds. It also comes with 5x Clear Image Zoom and Sony Steadyshot for stable recording while the front camera is an 8MP Exmor R front camera, so you shouldn’t be disappointed by the lack of features here.

Available in October for $379.99

The Sony XA1 will retail for $379.99 and is set to land in customers hands on October 20th. While the company has not made it clear when pre-orders will be available, we’ll be sure to update you when they do.

Launching with the new Xperia XZ1 and XZ1 Compact

Sony has two new flagships launching today in Berlin. The new Xperia XZ1 and XZ1 Compact run Oreo and feature a few interesting camera features, but unfortunately they also come from a long line of very similar devices. Check out our announcement post, the Xperia XZ1/Compact specs overview, and the hands-on!

What do you think of the Sony Xperia XA1 Plus? Do you plan on picking one up? Stay tuned for our full hands on, and check out this camera shootout to see how the Xperia Z5’s camera stacks up.